The Importance of Having Reliable Vendors
I didn’t come from an entrepreneurial family, my dad was a hard-working blue collar type of guy. He never did understand what a blog is. I am the first in my family to finish at university. I was so excited to start my new job after I graduated from college. It was a brand new beginning in the bright and beautiful world of corporate America! I was in finance! The world was my oyster! I was going to be rich!
I Lasted Four Days
Ironically, the thing that killed it for me was the schedule. Even after the rigors of achieving perfect school attendance, the hoops I had to jump through each day in order to arrive by 7:30 am bright eyed and bushy tailed to my new job were too much for me. I hadn’t realized how accustomed I’d become to a more flexible lifestyle. Even though I carried a full load of classes for years, the rest of my time was loose. I worked part-time with my boyfriend at his entertainment company, part-time as a restaurant waitress and the rest of my waking hours were spent studying. I moved between tasks like a professional juggler only I hadn’t realized it until a real job required me to be there at very specific times and to focus only on their stuff during that time. What was that all about?!
Unbeknownst to me during my tender developing years, I’d been in training for self-employment from the time I was in high school. I’ve always been very good about being on time and extremely dependable. When I said I’d do something, I did. And, if I couldn’t I’d communicate. These skills always served me well no matter what type of job I was doing.
The Basic Life Skills Do Transfer
So, several years ago when life once again presented me with the opportunity to work for myself, I expected that others who ran their own businesses would be as reliable as I tried to be. You can imagine my surprise when others didn’t play according to my preconceived ideas! I was (and continue to be) astonished at how badly most people run their businesses. Finding reliable vendors is a surprisingly difficult task. So, when you find someone you work well with–keep a hold of them and don’t let go.
One of the most effort consuming things you’ll do as a start-up business is work out how you do things. I heard a keynote speaker say once that, as a business owner, you either need to be working the system or working on the system. These are simple words, but they carry a powerful insight.
As a business owner, having your “systems” in place is invaluable. Not having to reinvent the wheel every time you make a sale will save you untold amounts of time and money. And, believe me, these are two very coveted resources. Having money allows you the security of spending your time well. And since none of us knows how much time we really have, this is something we don’t want to waste.
